by A M Jenner
Richard’s truck still wasn’t in his parking spot. Cold fear centered in her chest, making it hard to breathe. She wasn’t going to be rescued by others. Still, she had those pills; maybe they could help her some way. A tiny flame of hope continued to flicker in her heart.
The men escorted Marilee down the driveway, Karl’s grip on her arm forcing her to walk swiftly. They turned at the dead-end road and went up the street to the corner, veered toward the left and stopped at the second car parked there.
Parked far enough up the street, Marilee had been unable to see it from the stairway as she’d topped the stairs on her way home.
Karl forced Marilee into the front passenger seat, closed her door, and then climbed into the back seat behind her. The other man swiftly tossed her duffle into the trunk, climbed into the driver’s seat, inserted the key, and started the motor. Within moments, the car was in motion, leaving her freedom and her heart behind. Richard, Derrek: would she ever see them again?
Chapter Thirty
“Three-oh-four, pick up two; three-oh-four, please pick up two.” The store’s code for Richard to take a phone call startled him.
This had better be an emergency or one kid will be grounded for six weeks. Richard’s thoughts were not charitable as he walked toward the telephone kiosk.
He answered the call, listened to Derrek, asked a few questions, then hung up. Getting out his wallet, he removed the card Detective Briant had given him. Dialing the number on it, he waited impatiently for Briant to answer. Finally connected, he gave his information, and then rang off.
Richard called one of the men who worked for him and lived nearby and asked him to come in and cover for him. Rogers said he could be there in fifteen minutes.
Richard found the store manager and gained permission to leave after letting him know Rogers would be there shortly then all but ran from the store.
Hurrying to his truck, he quickly slid behind the wheel and drove home, his thoughts replaying his son’s conversation.
Derrek had come onto Marilee’s porch while the men had been talking with Marilee. They were taking her back to Tony, and she didn’t want to go.
Derrek, smart enough to go home without being discovered, called his dad right away; he was afraid they’d hurt her. He wasn’t alone. Detective Briant felt the same; Richard could hear it in his voice.
His own fear for Marilee was different than what he’d experienced as he’d faced his wife’s cancer and knew she’d lose that battle. This fear made him realize he deeply loved Marilee. Was his discovery too late? Would he see her again? Hold her? Kiss her? He wished the speed limit was higher!
Chapter Thirty-one
Detective Briant received Richard’s call, asked several questions, and then made some decisions and other phone calls. If the men had abducted Mrs. Ferguson and were taking her back to her husband in Chicago, they had now broken several laws. Before, there had been nothing more than hearsay evidence to alleged crimes. Nothing they could do anything about.
Now, they had the boy’s testimony of what he’d heard through the door and seen from his front window to prove kidnapping. Moreover, transporting the victim across state lines elevated the kidnapping to a federal offense. Briant could then ask federal officers for help.
He went to Marilee’s home; saw clothing strewn about the bedroom, then spoke with Richard and Derrek. Back at the station, Briant made a few other phone calls and, after speaking with his captain, reached into a drawer for a sheaf of official papers.
Following procedure, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was called and all the case particulars given. Detective Briant finished his paperwork and looked at his watch. It had been a normal 12-hour day.
He stretched, yawned, and headed for home. He hoped the FBI would nail Tony and set Mrs. Ferguson free. Briant had a low opinion of men who used women like Tony seemed to.
Chapter Thirty-two
It had been an exhausting ride to Chicago. The men switched off driving. Both had watched Marilee closely. She’d been unable to sneak the sleeping pills into their soft drinks or coffee, and because they’d been warned, she’d been unable to use the restroom trick. Their pit stops were always at out-of-city rest stops.
At gasoline stops they kept her in her seat, one of them staying in the car with her. Fast food places provided their meals. If she never saw another bucket of chicken, or bell-ringing place with Mexican food, or a double arches location it would be too soon!
Driving into the outskirts of her home town, Marilee’s stomach was roiling with nerves. How angry was Tony? How long would he let her live? What was going to happen?
Questions tumbled through her mind as they neared his neighborhood. She was frantic as they pulled into her old driveway and she saw Tony standing there, a triumphant look on his evil face.
Marilee wanted to scream as he reached for the door handle, but her voice died in her throat as she looked through the window and into his eyes. She knew then she’d not live to see another morning.
Chapter Thirty-three
Tony looked at his watch. Where were they? Karl had called as they entered the city. It wasn’t a long drive here; they should have driven up twenty minutes ago.
To keep calm, Tony went out onto the porch of his beautiful, spacious home and flung himself into the swing. He ran through his plans for making his errant wife pay for all the things she’d cost him either in time or money since the day she’d left, nearly five months ago.
In money alone he’d had to pay out nearly fifty thousand dollars. The cost to repair his corvette had been more than he’d expected because of the water damage to the leather interior.
Client rescheduling didn’t even figure into the equation, but the money she’d stolen from their joint account definitely added pain she’d experience in her repayment to him.
There was the cost of sending Karl and Benny to Utah to collect her, plus the extra when they’d screwed up the first capture and then had to hang around for another three weeks until they could try again.
Craig Oberdorff’s expenses and fees didn’t come cheap, but he was the best, so every penny was worth it. Tony couldn’t believe she’d had the brains to put together a plan that elaborate for disappearing from him.
He looked at his watch again. A whole three minutes had elapsed. He shook his head. He was going to extract a bit of satisfaction from Karl and Benny for their clumsiness in the capture and in making him wait so long since they’d entered the city. Where were the dunces? He didn’t have all day to wait!
A dark sedan finally turned the corner onto Tony’s street. He held his breath a moment then realized it wasn’t them. Blast their butts!
He watched the wrong car drive leisurely up the street. He didn’t recognize it, but since it didn’t concern him, he dismissed it from his mind as soon as it passed his home.
A white panel truck drove down the street, parking two doors down. He idly watched as two workmen in deep green overalls got out of the truck, got tool boxes from the back, and walked up the driveway of his neighbor’s house.
He smirked. That neighbor had seen Tony’s new home theater surround-sound set-up and was now in the process of trying to best him…as if he could! Hah!
Tony was always ahead of the game. His possessions were the best and the newest, and he made sure everyone knew it.
That’s one of the reasons his wife’s perfidy was so treacherous, damn her hide! He’d slipped a notch on his upward trek in the social world because of her.
People didn’t believe the story he’d put out that she had gone to take care of her gravely ill mother. Nobody in his world knew Marilee’s parents were dead; he’d never be caught in the lie.
Aside from her knowing about the diamonds, the social hiccup was the biggest reason he’d gone after her for revenge.
He scowled, glancing at his watch yet again. Another five minutes had crawled by. He took his cell phone from the holder on his belt and viciously punched the redial button, but be
fore the call went through, another dark sedan turned the corner onto his street.
He paused a moment, scrutinizing the car. It was the right one. At last! He severed the connection just as he heard the first ring and put the phone back in its case on his belt.
He stood up. Benny pulled the car into his driveway and Tony could see a woman sitting in the front seat, but she had dark hair. What the crap? After all this, they’d grabbed the wrong woman.
He took the first two stairs before he realized the woman was Marilee. Damn, the lengths she’d gone to in order to escape him! Well, they hadn’t worked, had they? A smile came to his face. Making her hurt was going to be fun!
He continued down the steps, his smile widening in anticipation of what was to follow. He reached the driveway just as Benny brought the car to a halt.
Tony looked in the window and saw the fear on Marilee’s face. His glance took in Karl in the back seat right behind her, and there was almost the same fear in his eyes, reminding Tony he was angry with the boys for taking so long arrive.
Benny nearly jumped out of the car, starting his explanations of an accident on the freeway that had all the lanes blocked for nearly twenty minutes. Tony reached down and yanked the door open. Benny’s blathering was making Tony even angrier because it was interfering with his enjoyment of yanking Marilee out of the car.
“Shut up, Benny!” Tony yelled, the smile leaving his face. “I sent you to get her and you brought her to me. I’ll deal with you about being late later. For now, I just want to give the proper welcome home to my errant wife!”
Benny shut his mouth immediately and stood quiet. Karl hadn’t even opened his door yet, so complete was the fear Tony saw in his face.
Marilee cowered back against the seat. He reached out and grabbed her wrist and yanked. She didn’t move.
He leaned over her and popped her seatbelt open, then backed out of the car, still keeping one hand clamped on her bony wrist.
He tugged a little. She still didn’t move. Her eyes were huge with her fear of him. He could almost taste it. He smiled and yanked her out of the car.
Like a toddler in a tantrum, she plopped onto the ground at his feet.
Suddenly there were men yelling and three cars screeched to a stop in front of his house. More men were piling out of the cars, screaming and pointing guns at him.
Tony couldn’t take in what was happening. Somebody from behind him shoved him into the car’s door and he finally understood what they were yelling at him; FBI. What the crap?
“Down!”
“On your knees!”
“On your face!”
“On the ground!”
“Hands out to the sides!”
“Now!”
“Move!”
“Down!”
Tony, thunderstruck, obeyed. On the ground, he was aware Karl was next to him, also on the ground.
Hands roughly yanked first one hand and then the other sharply behind his back and Tony felt handcuffs firmly close around his wrists. Men on either side of him grabbed his arms and hauled him to his feet, retaining their tight hold on him.
One of the men in the dark green overalls he’d seen at his neighbor’s house was standing in front of him. He had an open billfold sporting a gold badge on one side and FBI identity on the other side open in Tony’s face. He was saying Tony was under arrest for interstate kidnapping and began reading him his rights.
Tony clamped his mouth shut. He wasn’t going to say another word until he could call a lawyer. He hoped Karl and Benny didn’t spill their guts before he could get lawyers for them, too. They knew what he’d do to them if they spilled their guts.
Karl knew a lot about his doings. He’d been Tony’s right-hand man. Aw, crap! What if Karl took a deal? No, Karl wasn’t that stupid. He knew what he’d get from Tony if he sang. Karl would keep his mouth shut until the lawyer got there. And Benny, Benny didn’t know enough to be any danger.
As the men still holding his arms began pulling him towards one of the cars in the street, he looked over at Marilee. The stupid bitch was just sitting on the driveway bawling like a baby. He shot her a filthy look before he was hauled away from her.
As they reached the street, one of the agents dragging him forward put his hand on the top of Tony’s head to protect him from hitting the car roof on the way in. The other agent roughly shoved him into the back seat of it without releasing the handcuffs. Sitting against his hands was painful. His shoulders hurt. An agent got in the car next to him and both back doors slammed shut. As two more men got in the car in front of him, he had one final look at Marilee. Two women were beside her, helping her to stand up. The FBI car’s engine started and he was being driven away, anger burning in every fiber of his body.
Chapter Thirty-four
Two weeks later, Marilee walked tiredly up the driveway, across the yard of the duplex and onto her own porch. She hadn’t even had time to put her key to the lock when Derrek dashed out of the house hollering her name. She turned to watch him fly across the yard and up onto her porch.
“Oh, Marilee,” he yelped as he flung his arms around her, burying his face in her chest, great sobs convulsing his slender body.
Deeply touched, Marilee held him to her. “Derrek,” she said softly, trying to soothe him. “I sure have missed you.” She gave in to the impulse to lightly kiss the top of his head. Tears gathered in her eyes, momentarily obscuring her vision.
“I thought they were gonna hurt you!” The choked, muffled words were barely audible. “I was scared they’d even kill you! They looked real mean!”
His voice held all the agony his young imagination could experience, his arms squeezing tighter, as though to keep her here with him forever.
“Ah, Derrek, my Man, do you think I’d let that happen? No way, Partner!” Marilee hugged him close to her, grateful she was alive to do so.
She didn’t like to think about everything that had happened in the past couple of weeks; didn’t want to think of how she’d imagined the very things Derrek had just verbalized.
Richard’s truck came into view as he drove into his parking stall. Derrek heard the familiar sound, his head coming up to look toward the driveway. Quickly he swiped a shirt-sleeved-arm across his face to erase the tears. He looked back at Marilee, his eyes shining.
“Wait ‘til Dad sees you! He won’t believe it! He thought he’d never see you again! Boy, oh boy, is he gonna be happy!” Turning, he bolted down the steps and across the yard, yelling as he ran.
Marilee’s heart began thumping with cheer at the boy’s words. Dared she hope Richard cared for her?
“Dad! Dad! She’s home! She’s home!” He barreled into his dad’s mid-section just as Richard cleared the back of the truck.
“Whoa, Sport, take it easy! What are you saying?” Richard rumpled Derrek’s hair, then tipped his son’s face up so he could find out what was up.
“She’s home, Dad! Marilee’s home!” He began a little dance, dragging Richard around with him, nearly pulling him off-balance.
Marilee was drawn in the wake of Derrek’s mad dash to the driveway, breathless with her own anxiety to see Richard.
She watched as Derrek danced Richard closer to her and she caught her breath at how good he looked to her. Tears of longing and love for these two filled her eyes, shimmering the images before her.
Finally understanding what Derrek was yelling, Richard quickly turned and looked toward Marilee’s apartment. He saw her standing there on the front sidewalk and looked at her for a long moment.
Quietly, he eased himself out of his son’s grasp. He stepped towards her and simply opened his arms. Marilee, her breath catching in her chest, hesitated only a second before hurrying forward.
She all but fell into his embrace, knowing she was where she wanted to be...hoped to be…where she felt she belonged.
Being held didn’t seem to be enough for Marilee, and after being squeezed tightly for long moments, she eased back a little and Rich
ard, responding to her pulling away, looked down at her.
He looked at her eyes, dropped his gaze to her lips, and then looked back into her eyes while she performed the same action, silently asking for permission to take their relationship to a deeper level.
She gave him her answer by lifting her face for his kiss. Their lips met gently, softly, then the kiss deepened with passion, lighting the fire which had been building slowly for months.
As they drew apart, she saw the wonder in Richard’s face. She hoped he could see the same thing in her face. Suddenly Derrek joined the hug, an arm around each. His touch recalled her to the present, and she took a half step back, still standing close, but now without touching either of them. Until Richard said something, she didn’t dare move any closer.
“I was so worried,” Richard’s voice was gruff with emotion. “I thought I’d never see you again, Sweetheart.” His look was tender.
“I was so scared, Richard!” Marilee’s voice was shaky with her own emotions. “I didn’t know if I’d live to see another day. But I thought about you, and tried to find ways to get away so I could come back here.
“Thinking of you, though, and of what you mean to me, I knew I’d fight until there was no breath left before I’d give in to Tony.” Tears threatened once again, and she wiped them away with her fingertips.
Are you all right?” His voice was very soft. Marilee nodded, searching his face.
“I mean really all right?” he queried again as he reached out and touched her arm lightly, his love a tangible thing between them.
“Yes, Richard, I’m truly all right, now.” Her love answered him fully.
Richard studied her face, and then nodded his head, satisfied she was as she’d said.
“So how did you get away?” Derrek asked.
“Well, because you two called the police when Karl and Benny took me away, Detective Briant was able to call the FBI. They were having Tony followed. Karl called him about every four hours while we were driving back to Chicago. So, Tony knew what time we’d be driving up to the house. He was actually standing in the driveway when we pulled up.” Marilee shivered with the remembered horror of the moment she saw Tony. The hate on his face was something she’d always remember.
